Tim Frodsham, 18 August 2024
During our visit to the Saints in Caen and our tour of Normandy, we stopped at the home and gardens of Claude Monet in Giverny, France. His gardens covered one hectare (2.5 acres or 10,000 sq meters), larger than I had imagined. He did not unduly constrain his garden, but allowed his plants to grow freely. I can certainly relate to that. As I worked as an electrical engineer, designing the microprocessor chips used in your phones and computers, I worked and dwelt in an exacting environment where every detail had to be designed and redesigned, tested and tested again. My own garden was a refuge, I would plant and weed with care, but the result was anything but regimented. I let the plants go where they grow; providing trellises, fences and other structures to allow the plants to sprawl. In my own garden, I found perspective, I found peace and I found direction. The hours spent tending plants, flowers and trees that are a gift from God allowed me to find an inner peace; and quiet that welcomed the spirit in.
The Frodshams and the Snyders at Monet’s gardens in Giverny, France
As he nurtured and painted his gardens, Monet mixed the commonplace with he exotic. He was concerned only with color. He saw the worth of his garden variety, not by their cost or rarity, but by their color and contribution to the garden as a whole.
Often, we are trapped in a self-centered, myopic view of who we are and what we have accomplished. We judge our worth on worldly measures and our own limited perception. As I wandered the gardens and later contemplated the experience, I considered 2009 address by Elder Uchtdorf, “The reflection in the Water”, where he recounted the story of the Ugly Duckling. At times, all of us are caught up in our surroundings, and view ourselves only from our own narrow perspective. We judge others and their response to us by our shortsighted, self-centered view. It takes an outward view to allow the spirit to prompt and guide us. In her article, “A Reflection on Gratitude“, Michelle Van Tassell describes a moment when she saw herself, not with the typical view she had or herself, but as her husband saw her behavior.
“One morning I was doing laundry when I caught a glance of myself in a mirror. The reflection surprised me. I had not showered or groomed for the day, and as I looked at myself, I thought I was lucky that anyone would want to wake up next to me every day. For the first time, I found myself feeling grateful to my husband for loving me. I examined myself with new eyes and thought about our marriage from his perspective. The revelation that followed had little to do with bad hair and no makeup but much to do with my behavior. I considered all the contention I had introduced into our home. For the first time, I felt real gratitude for my husband—he had continued to love me even though I had been critical and ungrateful.”
For reflection, we all need a garden of some sort to alter our perspective, to form a chink in our armor that allows the spirit to seep in and lift our view from our selfish, inner perspective. To see ourselves how others see us, and most important, how the Lord sees us. At times, that garden is a mirror and a bad hair day, as described by Van Tassel. The Lord will use any and all means available to Him, but how much nicer to provide him a conduit, a time and place where we are more receptive to His council? We need that council now more than any other time Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives.
As far as artistic ability, I am the antithesis of Monet. Simple stick figures tax my artistic stamina to the extreme, though as I wandered his garden, I understood the tranquility and inspiration it brought him. What scholars know of Oscar-Claude Monet implies he wasn’t very religious. That has little to do with reflection and contemplation. God will use any effort we make to reflect on our lives to prompt and inspire us. He will reach us, inspire us and guide us where ever we stand. We all need to find a time and a place to contemplate and draw closer to Him. Find your garden.
Latter-Day Saints 